Planned around percentiles rather than raw scores. For most Indian engineering graduates the cheapest points are in Verbal, and almost nobody prepares that way.
The GRE was shortened in September 2023 and has not changed since. It is the standard entrance test for American master's and doctoral programmes, and increasingly an accepted alternative to the GMAT.
| Section | Questions | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Analytical Writing, Analyze an Issue | 1 task | 30 minutes |
| Verbal Reasoning, section 1 | 12 | 18 minutes |
| Verbal Reasoning, section 2 | 15 | 23 minutes |
| Quantitative Reasoning, section 1 | 12 | 21 minutes |
| Quantitative Reasoning, section 2 | 15 | 26 minutes |
Total about 1 hour 58 minutes. Analytical Writing is always first; the Verbal and Quantitative sections can appear in any order after it.
The difficulty of the second section in each measure depends on how you performed on the first section of that measure. Within a section you can skip questions, go back and change answers, and use Mark and Review. An on screen calculator is provided for Quantitative.
Verbal and Quantitative are each scored 130 to 170 in single points. Analytical Writing runs 0.0 to 6.0 in half points. The raw numbers look symmetrical. The percentiles are not.
| Score | Verbal percentile | Quantitative percentile |
|---|---|---|
| 160 | 82nd | 50th |
| 165 | 95th | 67th |
| 168 | Not published | 80th |
Based on all test takers from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2025. Mean Verbal 151.39, mean Quantitative 157.62.
A Quant 160 is only median. The Quantitative scale is heavily compressed at the top because so many international applicants, particularly from engineering backgrounds, score highly. A 160 that feels strong puts you at the fiftieth percentile. Meanwhile a Verbal 160 puts you in the top twenty percent. For most Indian engineering graduates, the marginal point is far cheaper to win in Verbal, and almost nobody plans that way.
Analytical Writing percentiles are gentler: 4.0 is the 63rd percentile, 4.5 the 85th, and 5.0 the 93rd.
Scores arrive in eight to ten days, include four free score recipients, and are valid for five years. ScoreSelect lets you choose which sittings to send.
Five things are in every test preparation programme we run, whatever the exam and whatever the level you start at.
Every programme includes dedicated one to one sessions with your own teacher for the questions that came up after class. Booked when you need them, not parked until the next group session.
The recording reaches you the same day, every time. Miss a class for a school exam, a work trip or a bad week and you have not missed the lesson. It is also the fastest revision tool you will have in the last fortnight.
Not a question bank. Complete timed papers sat under exam conditions, marked the way the board marks them, with a per section breakdown so you know which paper is costing you the score and not just that your total is short.
Before you start, we set the target and the timeline. Midway, we reset it against your mock results. Before you book the exam, we confirm you are sitting the right version on the right date. Teaching without this is just hours.
If a group cohort is not right for you, the whole programme can run one to one. Your own teacher, your own pace, sessions timed around school or work, and a plan built only around your weakest paper.
Every programme is led by a subject trainer who works to the examining board’s own published criteria, not to a generic syllabus. Your mock papers come back with a per section breakdown and the specific reason each mark was lost.
We keep cohorts small enough that the trainer knows your weakest paper by name, and we pair every group programme with one to one time on it.
Picking the wrong exam costs a year. TAICF, our own assessment framework, reads your academic record, your target countries and your deadlines, then tells you which test your shortlist actually accepts and what order to sit things in.
How TAICF worksFive years. ETS states scores are reportable for five years following the test date and that institutions should not use scores older than that.
ETS offers GRE at Home alongside test centre delivery. We could not confirm India-specific availability from an accessible official page, so check when you register.
We are not going to quote one, because two official ETS pages currently disagree: the global fees page lists 249 US dollars for most of the world while the ETS India site states 220 US dollars worldwide. Until that is resolved, check the figure inside the registration flow for your country before you pay.
GRE if you are applying to master's or doctoral programmes, or if you want one score to cover both business and non-business applications. GMAT if you are applying only to MBAs. Most business schools now accept either.
No. It is shorter, which reduces fatigue, but it also means fewer questions carry your score, so each one matters more and there is less room to recover from a slow start.
Book a free consultation at Gurugram or Dubai Silicon Oasis. We run a full-length diagnostic first, then build the plan backwards from your target score and your application deadline.
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